In my article, YOU STAND FOR US; WE STAND FOR YOU, it was noted that military personnel are not immune from the tragedy of divorce; and like civilian divorces, the same property issues arise, but with some different rules. What I am focusing on in this article is RETIREMENT and post divorce entitlements for the non military spouse (“Former Spouse”).

For sake of brevity, I’ll refer to the Servicemember as a soldier.

A soldier is entitled to a pension (a Defined Benefits Plan) based on the number of years of satisfactory military service, generally the completion of 20 years. Until 1983, federal law was silent on the power of the State courts to divide military pensions. However, in the 1981 McCarthy case, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution prohibited the division of military retired pay as a community property asset. In dictum, the Court indicated that Congress could change that by appropriate legislation. Taking the hint, Congress enacted the Uniform Services Former Spouses’ Protection Act of 1983 (“USFSPA”). That Act gave divorced spouses the right to share in the military retired pay in proportion to the number of years of the marriage during the soldier’s years of satisfactory military service.

The soldier is generally required to serve a minimum of 20 years, and the retirement age is not as critical as the total number of years served. The retirement benefit at 20 years is 50% of the Base Pay at the date of retirement with the maximum benefit being 67% at 30 or more years of service.

In Texas, the Former Spouse would be entitled to 50% of the military retired pay based on the number of years of marriage during military service. This also is applicable to the weekend warrior, the Reservist. Unlike the active duty career soldier, whose military PENSION is based a minimum of 20 years, the reservist is based on the total number of points that will equate to twenty years. However, the Former Spouse’s share is still calculated the same way.

There are some unique quirks or Rules to this military pension system that is critical to property division considerations. The first Rule is the 10 year rule. Under USFSPA, the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (“DFAS”) is not required to garnish the retired military personnel’s retired pay for the benefit of the Former Spouse unless the marriage was ten years or longer as of the date of the divorce and overlapped 10 years of military service. In that case, a State Decree of Divorce ordering that the Former Spouse’s share of the military retirement be withheld from the military retiree’s retirement pay would not be honored.

The second Rule is that a Former Spouse may also be entitled to 55% of retiree’s monthly retirement pay as a lifetime annuity upon the death of the retiree. This annuity is known as the Survivor Benefit Plan (“SBP”) and is clearly a valuable entitlement for a Former Spouse. However, the retiree must make the selection to pay for the SBP and designate Former spouse as the beneficiary at the time of his retirement. Some don’t because the SBP payment is taken out of the retirement pay. The Former Spouse may lose this right if she remarries before her 55th birthday; yet, if she divorces later, she may be reinstated. Go figure.

The third significant Rule is the 20/20/20 Rule. As of the date of the divorce, a marriage of 20 years; a military service of at least 20 years and the 20 years of marriage overlapped those 20 years of military service by the soldier. If the Former Spouse meets this Rule, the Former Spouse may be entitled to lifetime TRICARE (health care) and commissary and exchange benefits, as well as the appropriate portion of the retiree’s retirement pay and the SBP. This is a valuable right that can be a part of the negotiations, especially in light of the relatively young age of military retirees compared to civilian retirees.

But what is the Rule if the there’s not 20 years of overlapping marriage? The 20/20/15 Rule comes into play. 20 years of service and 20 years of marriage with more than 15 but less than 20 years of overlapping marriage. The SBP and the proportionate share of the retirement pay is still available, but not commissary and exchange privileges. TRICARE is only for one year after the divorce is final. There is, however, a post TRICARE health insurance plan that can be purchased by the Former Spouse that very similar to TRICARE. Like COBRA in the civilian world, it has a short life span and in this case only 18 months. However, relatively speaking, it is much cheaper than COBRA. Thus, the retiree gets TRICARE for Life; the Former Spouse gets TRICARE for one Year (possible 36 months).

The 10 year Rule, the 20/20/15 Rule and the 20/20/20: all have significant impact on the division of military retirement issues. Also, the SBP is a part of the property settlement picture. Obviously, when dealing with a divorce involving military personnel, these issues must be explored as soon as possible in the process.

In Texas, a divorce can either be granted for “fault” or “no fault.” In a “no fault” divorce, a party has to tell the Court that the marriage has simply broken down and that there is no hope for reconciliation.

A “fault” divorce in Texas is a divorce based on cruel treatment, adultery, conviction of a felony with imprisonment of at least a year, abandonment in excess of one year, living apart for at least three years, or confinement in a mental hospital for at least three years without hope of recovery. A “fault” divorce is most likely when there are contested issues involving children or property and the other party’s past behavior should be taken into consideration by the Court. At Bailey & Galyen, our experienced divorce attorneys will consider your case carefully to help you determine which type of divorce is right for you.

Bailey & Galyen provides a free initial consultation to all clients. To set up an appointment, contact our office by calling 1-866-300-1529 today.

Additionally, Texas divorce’s can either be contested or uncontested. An uncontested divorce is one in which you and your spouse have agreed on all matters, both children and property related. A contested divorce is one where there is not complete agreement. A contested divorce is not necessarily a hostile one. It simply means there is a disagreement that must be resolved.

Some of the child related matters that must be decided are:

the rights and duties of each parent;

the possession schedule for each parent

child support and health insurance for the child

Property issues that come along with a divorc include determining what property is community property and what property is separate property, the value of that property, the division of property and alimony/spousal support.

The child and property issues are most often resolved in one of three ways:

settlement through informal negotiations

settlement through mediation

final trial

Contact Bailey & Galyen Today

We answer our phones 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can contact our office by calling 1-866-300-1529 to set up a free initial consultation. Evening and weekend consultations are available upon request. Se habla Español.